KANSAS CITY, Mo. — On the first day of 2023, the Broncos rang in the new year right here at Arrowhead Stadium.
They found themselves on that cold day in a full-on state of flux. Interim head coach Jerry Rosburg made his debut six days after Nathaniel Hackett had been fired. The initial contact with Sean Payton and other coaching candidates came soon after.
At that point, the Broncos knew they had a big project on their hands, but thought perhaps a new face at the front of the team room would be the catalyst for swift change.
On the 285th day of 2023, the Broncos returned to the home of their division rival and were served a reminder that not only is the gap between themselves and Kansas City wider than the Missouri River Valley, but also that itap going to take more than Payton’s coaching resume in New Orleans to even think about narrowing the gulf.
In the 10 months between the matchups, the Broncos traded away yet another first-round pick in order to hire Payton and an almost entirely new coaching staff, led the NFL in free agency spending and tried to will playoff expectations into existence.
The Chiefs swapped one high-priced offensive tackle for another, continued to churn their wide receiver group and, eventually, came to terms with star defensive tackle Chris Jones. Of course, life’s pretty straightforward when you’ve got a 28-year-old quarterback who doubles as the best player on the planet and the gravitational force around which the AFC West is likely to revolve for another decade-plus.
“Right now they’re the champs and they’re one of the best, if not the best team in the league,” Broncos defensive end Zach Allen told The Denver Post on Thursday night. “For us, I think itap a good building block but there’s still a lot to be done. Give them credit. Thatap as talented a team as you’re going to see.”
They’re rolling along against the Broncos (16 straight wins), in 2023 (five straight after an opening loss) and in the division (out to an early lead again as they chase their eighth straight AFC West title).
Denver, meanwhile, spent the past 10 months changing every facet of the football operation Payton could get his hands on just to arrive at a point where the conclusion could well be that a complete tear-down and rebuild is the only path forward.
“Itap definitely good to see how guys react to (adversity),” Allen said. “I understand the expectations with everything that people had and our own expectations and, obviously, thatap where we’re at. But itap a tale of, itap disappointing but we’re not discouraged. Obviously, you wish to win games like this, the Raiders, Washington, the Jets. Those were definitely winnable games that we should have (won). Miami was the only true (butt)-kicking we’ve had. Thatap the NFL. Seeing how guys react is good.”
Players react play-to-play, game-to-game, week-to-week. Coaches and front office executives have to balance those increments with a bigger picture. Payton said recently he and general manager George Paton have “a good handle on this current roster and our vision for the roster a year from now.”
Allen signed this spring to a three-year deal as a key part of the first free agency crop of Payton’s tenure. Itap clear nobody expected this start, but there’s no denying reality at this point.
“I’m here for the long haul,” Allen said. “Thatap why a lot of guys came here. Thatap the core group thatap leading. Itap obviously very frustrating, but itap not like guys are like, ‘we quit, we’re done’ or anything like that. Guys come into work and I think thatap why you see the steady improvement. Guys are working to figure it out.”
The scoreboard in 2023 shows a pair of competitive games so far between Denver and Kansas City: 27-24 in January, when the Broncos led going into the fourth quarter and 19-8 on Thursday. There’s another rendition in just two weeks at Empower Field.
Regardless of whether the Chiefs make it 3-0 in the calendar year or Denver ends an eight-year stretch of misery against Mahomes and coach Andy Reid, the games are the only element of this rivalry that are actually close. In the broader scheme, Denver and Kansas City are operating in different football universes entirely.
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